The aircraft industry has recently shifted towards light emitting diode (LED) technology for aircraft interior lighting solutions. LED technology has advantages in both energy consumption and the ability to utilize the full visible spectrum, which provides dynamic light scene changes that may enhance customer experience. In larger, wide body aircraft, there are typically eight rows of lights in any cross section of the main cabin, and 6 rows of lights in any cross section of the main cabin of a narrow-body aircraft. Each row consists of lights of different lengths across more than 70% of an aircraft's length. However, LEDs typically have a narrower beam angle than conventional incandescent lights and thus cannot spread light as efficiently as incandescent lights. Thus, LEDs are typically spaced very close to each other. Further, the conventional LEDs utilized today are coupled to long printed circuit boards (PCBs) that serve as a mount and a controller for the LEDs. The PCBs are expensive and the large number of the PCBs adds weight to the aircraft.
What is needed is a method and apparatus for lighting an aircraft interior utilizing LED technology.